“We take these kinds of thefts seriously,” said Sgt John Franchi of the Ventura county sheriff's department.

“It’s a big product here and in California.”

Avocado prices have surged in recent months, owing to a diminished avocado crop in California and Mexico and increased demand for avocados worldwide.

US per capita consumption was only 1.1 pounds in 1989, but rose to seven pounds by 2014, according to the Agricultural Marketing Resource Center.

The Hass Avocado Board reported that the average sales price for an avocado was 89 cents in January. By March 19, the latest week of data reported, it had risen to $1.25, and avocados at Whole Foods in New York now sell for $2.50 each.

Police believe the men were stealing and selling avocados to unsuspecting customers for at least several months.

In late May, sheriff’s detectives launched an investigation into allegations the men were receiving cash for the stolen avocados, said Mr Franchi.

The men had been working at Mission Produce in Oxnard, 60 miles outside of Los Angeles.

The company’s president, Steve Barnard, said partial pallets and boxes of avocados were purloined and sold from the back door of the distribution centre.

Typically, a box of avocados — which are grown in California, Mexico, New Zealand and Chile — sells for $50, he said. In this case, Mr Barnard said, the men were selling a box for $20 to $30 — far below market value.

They were tipped off by customers that something was amiss.

The facility’s bookkeepers also noticed that their figures were not adding up and that their books were coming up short. Surveillance footage confirmed their suspicions.

“I guess they got greedy and they got bulletproof,” said Mr Barnard.

Mission Produce is one of the world’s largest avocado distributors, with facilities in China, Canada, the Netherlands and the US.

In 2015, California exported $25 million worth of avocados, according to the UC Davis Center for Agricultural Issues.